Long Live the King

It seems both the media and the players have run out of words to describe Felix Hernandez. Words like “unbelievable”, “unreal”, and “ridiculous” are batted around like a beach ball at a Dodges’ game. The truth is, nobody knows exactly how to describe the run Felix is on right now because no one in the history of the game has been on a similar run. In his last 15 starts, Felix has gone at least 7 innings and given up 2 or fewer runs. That is a Major League record. It has never been done before. Let’s just throw out a couple more numbers.

Felix has a 0.33 ERA when his team is trailing this year. His overall ERA for the year is 1.97. That means he’s giving up less than 2 runs every nine innings. His WHIP (Walks and hits per inning pitched) is .877. Being under 1 in that category is unheard of. He leads the league with giving up just over 6 hits per 9 innings pitched. Opponents are batting .193. There are many major league pitchers who have batting averages themselves higher than .193.

There are several numbers I can continue to throw out, but the fact of the matter is that we are seeing a once in a lifetime player play here for our hometown Mariners. We have him signed to a long contract (through the 2019 season). No player in the history of Seattle sports has been more dominant during a stretch than Felix is right now. The only exception might be Ken Griffey Jr. when he homered in 8 straight games. Still, this is 15 games.

Felix isn’t going to keep it up. There are going to be starts he struggles. We have to be prepared for that. But for now, let’s sit back and enjoy the King do his thing.